I attached two tickets from Tim Holtz At the Movies Stamp Set, that were coloured with Distress Stains, with a Tim Holtz Idea-ology
Mini Fastener. They looked too big for the card, so I tore them and glued the
torn parts on separately.

Friday, 27 July 2012

Hope you are all basking in the gloriously sunny
weather we are having at the moment, still finding time to craft of course.

I
decided to pack away my sewing machine and get out my paintbrush for my DT
project. I used a plain wooden box and gave it a few coats of Fresco Finish Snowflake Paint. Then I gave it a light sanding to make the surface ready for stamping.

Now then, for me this is a simple card to build up,
as it's only built up using our stamping skills to rely upon.

Taking the spiders web stamp, ink it up with the
Smokey Gray ink and just stamp. You're not after a masterpiece on this, as it's just the
backing sheet. Stamp off the edges aswell - overlap a little. No one is going
to go ‘OH LOOK THEY HAVE MADE A MISTAKE AND IT'S TOTALlY RUINED THE MASTER
PEICE!’ So relax, enjoy yourself and just stamp away.

I know some crafters find random the hardest thing
in the world to do. So if you're not comfortable right away, then try it out on
scrap paper first, until you're happy with the direction you are going. Then remember the golden rule - a quick blast from
a heat gun, not only drys it but also fixes it.

The next part of the card is the owl. Ink it up
well with the Espresso ink and just make an impression onto your card. Another quick blast with the heat gun and we are ready for the last stamping part - the
wording. That again is also stamped using the Espresso ink pad.

Now then, we have to decide what size of
margin we are going to leave around the inked images. I have not said you must
do it this size or that size. This is YOUR CHOICE. Some crafters like a small
margin around their work, some a larger one. So you decide and then trim.
Remember to allow for the corners - I would practice on some scrap
paper first.

Taking your DInk Blending Tool and the Tea Dye
ink pad, start to build up colour onto the edges of the spiders web, owl and
wording stamped images. By using a craft mat, this helps hold the ink and helps you move the ink onto your card.
If you just laid it on some paper or a green cutting mat, the ink would hold and
it would not help you in the movement of the ink. When you're happy with your edging, a quick blast once again ..... (need I say any more? lol).

The next project we need to do, is make our leaf
embellishment. It's not a problem if you feel you can't do this because you don't have that particular punch - there are always ways round such problems and we have a leaf download here.

We now have all the components to
make our card! Secure the backing paper onto the card followed by
the spiders web. As you can see, it's at a ‘jaunty angle’, so for those who can't do
this for the fear that it's not a straight line, please try it. Relax and let
that side of you that always says ‘IT'S GOT TO BE LEVEL!’ take a holiday. I'm not mocking, as I know from experience that
some artists don't like random. We can relax a little with the main owl image, as
that's going to be secured into place level with the whole of the card. This
then kind of dictates as to where we then place the text. Place a layer of
double sided foam pads onto the back of the wording and then place onto the
card.

Now then, all that's left is the leafy
embellishment. When you secure
this into place, make sure that when you do place it, it brings together all the
elements. This is a way of anchoring the whole thing.

Any questions please send me a message and I will
do my best to help you.

Make a background using your craft mat and the new Summer Tim Holtz inks. Cut out a piece that will fit onto the study card.

Using black Archival, stamp frida onto a piece of white card, colour with watercolours and cut out. Stamp the heart stems up the sides of the card, using the music stamp, stamp a border at the bottom and then stamp diagonally across the top of the card.

Colour the stems in with a green pencil.

Stamp the phrase onto a piece of coloured card, cut out, arrange on the card and glue down.

Tuesday, 24 July 2012

I began by tearing strips of masking tape and
sticking them randomly to a card blank, making sure to overlap them in places.
I then swiped Weathered Wood and Scattered Straw Distress Ink lightly
over the top, highlighting the edges.

I cut the wheels from the second image and
découpaged them on top, using foam tape, for added dimension. I inked
over the wooden embellishments with Scattered Straw and glued them onto the
card with Modge Podge.

Firstly, I stamped the Stampendous London Stamp
onto the Ranger paper with VersaFine Vintage Sepia ink. I then made a mask,
covered the image and stamped over it using the IndigoBlu Jack stamp, which I
had coloured with the Faded Jeans Distress Marker.

I then coloured in the London image, using
Distress Markers and the Marvy Embossing Markers. I then inked most of the
London image with a VersaMark Watermark Pen and covered this with the WOW
embossing powder and heated with my heat gun.

I then covered the whole image with Antique Linen
Distress Stain and finally, I added 2 strips either side that I coloured with Distress
Markers.

Saturday, 21 July 2012

I decided to revisit a stamp that I had used for
one of the first cards I ever did for That’s Crafty! I wanted to bring a whole
fresh new look to the stamp, proving it wasn't just a ‘Steam Punk’ style image. The stamp is called 'Large Dress Form' and is made
by Lost Coast Designs. It also gave me the opportunity to use the new ink
pads I had received by Tim Holtz!

This card is made by using two elements. The first is the card front. Using the Dylusions
Mask, start to build up a layer of ink using your blending tool. I used the
Squeezed Lemon first, being careful to keep the mask in position. A quick
blast of the heat gun helped fix the ink.

The next layer was the Peacock Feathers ink - once
again being careful not to move the mask. The latter ink was used mostly at the
edge of the card and not covering the yellow already worked down. When I was happy removing the mask, I once again
gave the card front a quick blast.

The next part of the card is the Dress Form. Using
the right ink pad for the colouring medium will save you a lot of trouble
later. With ProMarkers, you need to use a DYE BASED ink pad like Adirondack. If you're using water colouring mediums, then it's an OIL BASED
ink pad like Versafine. After you have stamped, give the image a quick blast with your heat gun. I
have started to do this all the time, as I found by fixing the ink, there
was less chance of the lines bleeding into the colouring medium.

Let's select our colours and start colouring in.
Pick your colouring medium alcohol pens or water based pens and start to build
up layers of colour. Keep it soft and don't let it become heavy with deep
layers of colour. After the image has been coloured and fixed, it's
time to cut out the aperture on the front card, so that we can fix the stamp
image behind it. I find this a lot cleaner than trying to build up a card and
then making slight positioning errors that cant be fixed.

Use a scrap paper cut to the size of the finished
stamped image and start to look at placements. When you're happy, just make a
small pin prick on the front of the card. This will give you the 4 corners to
then mark out and cut the aperture out.

When this has been done, using good double sided tape, secure the stamped image facing FRONT in the REVERSE side of the card
front. Using the gold peel off's, you can hide any slight
imperfections with the cutting out and this will also frame the stamped image.

Last thing to do is secure the two ribbons into
place. I will be making a short video soon on a perfect ribbon cutting unit ....
it's small and very easy to use!

There you have it, a bright and cheerful card that
lIthink would look great on any shelf.

Any questions, please send a message and l will do
my best to get back to you a.s.a.p.